The burden of race in Malaysia

Malaysiakini:

Tommy Thomas and the burden of race

by S Thayaparan

“Everything I did was painted in racial tones and hues. And they succeeded. The brainwashing achieved its objectives.”

- Tommy Thomas

Reading excerpts from Tommy Thomas’ memoir about, amongst other things, his brief stint as attorney-general (AG) for this country, it is amazing that a non-Malay could do anything without being vilified by the state because of their ethnicity.

His clear message was of a dithering Pakatan Harapan when it came to reforms, including of the prison board. Imagine that - perhaps the most outspoken political coalition when it comes to the death penalty, that also welcomed abolishing the death penalty, but its political operatives dithered and pandered.

While Harapan's dithering was of no surprise, the reality of the racial dynamics and a festering "Don’t spook the Malays agenda" was perhaps the greatest impediment to reform in this country.

While you could have an honest discussion about policies waffling when it comes to Harapan, the fact that race is always a factor when it comes to policy and personalities make such conversations impossible. Not to mention the disingenuous reading of our Constitution and political norms that non-Malays feel are verboten to redefine.

As someone who has worked in the security apparatus of the state, as a non-Malay, there are always times you begin to wonder if what you are doing is going to be judged through a racial lens. Nobody likes to talk about this but it truly happens.

Every time there is a non-Malay in power, no matter which coalition appoints them, the rakyat will be left to wonder what kind of racial shenanigans are going on and how much pressure is the "race and religion" brigade applying to this non-Malay person in power.

Forget about objectively assessing an individual's actions because we now know, thanks to Thomas' clear statements, that he and the other high-ranking non-Malays were vilified not by their actions but rather because they were non-Malays in a government which the Malay political establishment always thought was their exclusive province.

And this is really the insidious nature of these Malay "uber alles"-type governments which I suppose even Harapan was afraid to confront from within. As a non-Malay in a position of power, you will always be second-guessed.

You will always be expected to conform to the Malay narratives of the state because, if you do not, you get people like Umno/PAS and even from the government who appointed you, sabotaging you.

And it is really scary because, when it comes to issues of national security, you want whoever is making decisions to do so based on facts and evidence. Honestly, if a Malay AG had released a supposed Islamic terrorist because they were unlikely to make a prosecution, what do you think the reaction would have been?

How could anyone work effectively but more importantly carry out his or her obligation without fear or favour? This of course is not uncommon. In newsrooms, offices, and wherever Malaysians gather, the spectre of race is always present.


Dropping charges against LTTE 12

The fact that the state has always used racial and religious flashpoints to further nativist narratives is evidence that the political and bureaucratic leadership of this country has no intention of ever reforming no matter who has the political power.

The fact that the current prime minister – according to Thomas – attempted to exert his influence in further demonising the LTTE 12, is indicative of how much trouble this country is in.

The fact that Malay right-wing forces in this country could exert influence or at least attempt to do so over the AG's office and harass then finance minister Lim Guan Eng, and for Guan Eng to even think of resigning to keep the peace, points to the eventual collapse of any form of independent government.

Former finance minister Lim Guan Eng (left) and former attorney-general Tommy Thomas

Whatever issues you may have of how Guan Eng carried out his professional responsibilities, the reality is that he, like Thomas, was never judged by his actions but rather by his ethnicity.

For instance, when the state security apparatus was disappointed as reported in the press, that Thomas dropped the charges against the LTTE 12 because of lack of substance, they were disappointed that a non-Malay did not have the conviction to carry out the prosecution, which is certainly the narrative that was coming out from right-wing types when the charges were dropped.

After all, the state security apparatus, as exemplified by the inspector-general of police (IGP), has demonstrated a willingness to coddle the religious kidnapper of M Indira Gandhi's child.

So why should it surprise anyone that the state security apparatus expects the AG to conform to right-wing narratives like the Perlis mufti who said of the LTTE 12:

"DAP leaders who openly state support for LTTE terrorists should be prosecuted and arrested. How dangerous for the country if there are political leaders involved in supporting terrorist groups and efforts to shed blood?"

Hence, if you are a non-Malay, could you ever trust anything coming out of the state, even if it comes from the mouth of a non-Malay? Indeed, Thomas made some bold moves but what would have happened if he decided to prosecute the LTTE 12? What would have been the reaction then?

I would argue that it would have made right-wing nutters extremely happy if Thomas, as an “Indian”, charged and prosecuted the LTTE 12. This way, he would provide a fig leaf of credibility to the sham charges and would confirm to the Malay community that a non-Malay was protecting their “rights”, which in this case meant prosecuting political operatives and ordinary citizens for having LTTE paraphernalia.

And that is the burden of race in this context - it makes you either an accomplice or an outsider.


S THAYAPARAN is Commander (Rtd) of the Royal Malaysian Navy. A retired barrister-at-law, he hopes young people will assume the mantle of leadership – if there is to be any hope for this country.